Gougères

When you're an American in Paris, there's nothing more flattering than to have French people ask you to share your recipe for one of their national treasures. Of all the things I make for my French friends, this is the one that gets the most requests.

The easiest way to describe gougères is to call them cheese puffs. Their dough, pâte àchoux, is the same one you'd use for sweet cream puffs or profiteroles, but when the pâte àchoux is destined to become gougères, you fold in a fair amount of grated cheese. In France, I use Gruyère, Comté, Emmenthal, or, just for fun and a spot of color, Mimolette, Gouda's French cousin; in America, I reach for extra-sharp cheddar, and sometimes I add a little smoked cheese to the mix.

Gougères are made everywhere in France (and can be bought frozen in many stores), but their home is Burgundy, where they are the first thing you get when you sit down in almost any restaurant. In Burgundy, gougères are often served with the local aperitif, kir; chez Greenspan, where I serve them no matter what I'm pouring as a welcoming glass, my favorite sip-along is Champagne. I love the way Champagne's toastiness and gougères' egginess play together.

Although you must spoon out the puffs as soon as the dough is made, the little puffs can be frozen and then baked straight from the freezer, putting them in the realm of the doable even on the spur of the moment.

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Preparation

Position the racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.

Bring the milk, water, butter, and salt to a rapid boil in a heavy-bottomed medium saucepan over high heat. Add the flour all at once, lower the heat to medium-low, and immediately start stirring energetically with a wooden spoon or heavy whisk. The dough will come together and a light crust will form on the bottom of the pan. Keep stirring—with vigor—for another minute or two to dry the dough. The dough should now be very smooth.

Turn the dough into the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or into a bowl that you can use for mixing with a hand mixer or a wooden spoon and elbow grease. Let the dough sit for a minute, then add the eggs one by one and beat, beat, beat until the dough is thick and shiny. Make sure that each egg is completely incorporated before you add the next, and don't be concerned if the dough separates—by the time the last egg goes in, the dough will come together again. Beat in the grated cheese. Once the dough is made, it should be spooned out immediately.

Using about 1 tablespoon of dough for each gougère , drop the dough from a spoon onto the lined baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches of puff space between the mounds. Using about 1 tablespoon of dough for each gougère, drop the dough from a spoon onto the lined baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches of puff space between the mounds. Slide the baking sheets into the oven and immediately turn the oven temperature down to 375 degrees F. Bake for 12 minutes, then rotate the pans from front to back and top to bottom. Continue baking until the gougères are golden, firm, and, yes, puffed, another 12 to 15 minutes or so. Serve warm, or transfer the pans to racks to cool.

Serving

Gougères are good straight from the oven and at room temperature. I like them both ways, but I think you can appreciate them best when they're still warm. Serve with kir, white wine, or Champagne.

Storing

The best way to store gougères is to shape the dough, freeze the mounds on a baking sheet, and then, when they're solid, lift them off the sheet and pack them airtight in plastic bags. Bake them straight from the freezer—no need to defrost—just give them a minute or two more in the oven. Leftover puffs can be kept at room temperature over night and reheated in a 350-degree-F oven, or they can be frozen and reheated before serving.

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Recent Reviews

i made these ahead and froze them for my daughters bridal shower. The cooked up just perfect and everyone loved them!! light and fluffy! I mixed Colby cheese and the greyere.

tnjpritchett from appleton WI /

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An updated review for the results of freezing the dough and then baking them. The fresh batch that I cooked right after making the dough was terrific. The batch I just cooked following the freezing directions for the remaining dough worked really well. They seemed slightly smaller and just a tiny bit grainy in texture, but otherwise cooked up really well in just about the same amount of time as the fresh batch. And it was terrific to pull them out of the oven as our guests arrived - the house smelled great, it was so nice to have something warm to serve with drinks on a chilly night, and everyone went back for seconds or thirds. All in all, this was a really successful recipe.

agasque from DC /

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Forgot to rate with forks. I definitely give this one four! I made a full batch and baked half for Thanksgiving pre-dinner. I have the other half in the freezer for future last minute appetizers. (note, we experimented warming these up in a microwave the next morning.... not recommended! They get soft and limp).

agasque from DC /

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These are great! I found the trick to making sure they don't lose their shape in the oven is to beat the dough longer than you think you should. I used gruyere and a pinch of nutmeg and cayenne. Perfect with drinks before dinner.

agasque from DC /

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They are delicious but simple. They would do better on a platter of various appetizers than alone.